Tampopo

Summary: If ever a film displayed a food fetish, it's Tampopo. A tantalising treat of Japanese cinema.

A delicious blend of food, sex, satire and love letters to western cinema, Tampopo is a truly unique cinematic experience.

There just isn't another film that springs to mind that even comes close to matching the frenzied, sensual and slapdash meal that Japanese writer/director Juzo Itami brings to the table.

Itami himself describes it as a "ramen western" - a tongue in cheek eastern response to the spaghetti westerns made by Italians on a shoestring (or spaghetti string if you will) budget.

While there is a cowboy character intrinsic to the plot, Tampopo is set in modern day Japan and gets its action not from shoot-outs but from the preparation of ramen noodles and other Japanese culinary delights. Defining an exact plot is a tricky task and to attempt to relate it here would defy the point - this isn't some labyrinthine drama; it's a satire at heart. There are hints of Jacques Tati's Playtime here and that's no bad thing at all.

Long before the term "food porn" entered popular culture, Itami was exploring gastronomic delights on screen with food playing a central role in the film's major developments from violence to sex scenes.

While Itami's stylistic influences appear to converge from both sides of the planet, Tampopo remains a vibrantly Japanese statement. So raise a glass, Tampopo is a dish worth savouring. It's out now on Criterion Collection Blu-ray with a buffet's worth of extras:

New 4K digital restoration, with uncompressed monaural soundtrack on the Blu-ray

The Making of “Tampopo,” a ninety-minute documentary from 1986, narrated by director Juzo Itami

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